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U.S. Ambassador to Armenia Kristina Kvien on Thursday hosted a reception in honor of World Press Freedom Day for Armenian media representatives and other stakeholders. In her remarks, Kvien underscored the important role a free press plays in democratic societies to inform the public and hold governments and those in power accountable, the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan reported. 

“Media plays a critical role in facilitating an open exchange of information and ideas, keeping people informed, and holding those in power accountable, efforts that are vital in every democratic society,” she said.

The ambassador highlighted U.S. support for the Armenian media sector, including through USAID and Public Diplomacy Section (PDS) programming.

In March, USAID Armenia signed a $15 million agreement to implement the “Media Program in Armenia” project with Internews Network, a U.S. organization, in collaboration with local media development NGOs, the Media Initiatives Center and the Yerevan Press Club, and an international group, the Zinc Network.  The project will strengthen the information space in Armenia by enhancing journalistic standards and content quality, catalyzing the competitiveness and financial viability of public interest media, and fostering the enabling environment for independent information flow.

The U.S. Embassy’s Public Diplomacy Section announced it will make a $2.3 million investment into a U.S. exchange programs for journalists, as well as graduate-level journalism education in Armenia.  The first project will be the “U.S.-Armenia Professional Partnership in Journalism,” a U.S. exchange program for professional journalists. The second project will take the form of a U.S.-Armenia university partnership to establish a Center for Excellence in Journalism at an Armenia university.  More details about these projects will be released by the Embassy later this year.